Next Western Michigan football coach will face tough nonconference schedule, increased expectations of winning at high level

Bill Cubit talks to the Western Michigan football team during a practice this past spring. Cubit was fired on Saturday. Cubit consistently put a competitive team on the field, but athletic director Kathy Beauregard said Cubit did not win enough. MLive file photo

KALAMAZOO, MI – Western Michigan University has begun its search for the 15th football coach in program history and there are a few criterion and challenges the newcomer will be met with.

The next head coach will take on a tough nonconference schedule in his first season at the helm.

Western Michigan opens up on the road at Michigan State on Aug. 31, then hosts Nicholls State a week later before traveling to Northwestern on Sept. 14 and to Iowa on Sept. 21. In all likelihood, the Broncos will be 1-3 when they enter Mid-American Conference play.

The new coach will come out of the nonconference schedule with more than just bumps and bruises though, as Western Michigan athletic director Kathy Beauregard said two weeks ago the guaranteed money from playing Northwestern will not go to the general athletic budget and will stay within the football program.

The coach will have to become comfortable with a rigorous nonconference schedule, as the money generated from guaranteed payouts plays a big role in funding the entire athletic department at WMU.

With a playoff system being implemented in 2014, it will be interesting to see how the guaranteed money figures are affected as more emphasis will be put on strength of schedule.

Western Michigan’s next football coach will also enter the season knowing there is inherited pressure to get past three speed bumps during MAC play – Northern Illinois, Toledo and Ball State, all of which will be on the road. There is also the rivalry with Central Michigan, which will be played in Kalamazoo next season.

Unless WMU’s next head coach can convince the athletic department to increase the size of the football staff, the incoming staff will have to handle several responsibilities other than coaching on the field.

Western Michigan did not have a designated football secretary this season. Defensive line coach Lou Esposito was the program’s recruiting coordinator. Jay Steilberg, the director of football operations, both handled recruiting challenges, such as visits and other aspects of the process.

Northern Illinois, which has won the MAC West Division title the last three seasons, has a designated assistant athletic director who coordinates football operations and an assistant director of football operations who handles recruiting.

Toledo, which will finish either second or third in the west division this season, has a director of football operations and a football secretary, while quarterbacks coach Scott Isphording coordinates recruiting.

Ball State, which will finish either second or third in the west division this season, has an assistant athletic director handle football operations, a graduate assistant that assists with football operations, while tight ends coach Joey Lynch coordinates recruiting.

Having established recruiting roots would be a big bonus for the new coach and could alleviate some of the pressure of having a smaller staff than other MAC programs.

The 15th football coach Western Michigan’s history will also have to win, not only consistently but at a high level and in big games.

Bill Cubit, who was fired after Saturday’s season-ending 29-23 loss to Eastern Michigan, had an overall record of 51-47 at WMU, including a 36-27 mark in the MAC. He had three losing seasons in his eight-year tenure.

Cubit’s players rarely had off-field issues and were successful in the classroom, but Beauregard cited a lack of success on the field as a reason for his termination.

WMU was 3-5 against Northern Illinois and lost to the Huskies the past five seasons. The Broncos were 4-4 against Toledo, but lost to the Rockets the last three seasons. Against Ball State, WMU was 3-5. Western Michigan was 3-5 against Central Michigan in Cubit’s tenure.